The black angel

The black angel, by Cordia Byers
Ballantine books, June 1993
Grade: D

Ravaged by sea and sun, Brianna McClure lay at death's
door when Roarke O'Connor, captain of the Black Angel, plucked her from a
shipwreck in the pirate-infested waters of the Caribbean.

For that, Brianna knew she owed the
privateer her life. But after one rapturous night together, Brianna felt the
debt paid in full. No one, especially Roarke, must ever learn the truth about
her flight from England -- for she had a man's blood on her hands.

As soon as I read this during one of the love scenes I started laughing so hard that my ribs hurt. Just thinking about it now is making me giggle. When I read something so corny I am usually embarrassed for the author, When I read this I was embarrassed for myself.

"A moan deep in Brianna's throat told him her pain was forgotten and it
was time to take her with him into the land where mystical fires burned the
flesh until it exploded in a burst of ecstasy, making mortal man feel
indomitable, a god of his own domain."

Gah! My eyes, my eyes. That was worse than the cover (almost)Thankfully is was the first and last of that type of description that I came across while reading The black angel.

The book starts off during the funeral for Brianna's mother. Brianna is mourning her mother, and is also fearing for her safety because her step father has the hots for her, and now that her mother is dead, there is no one to protect her from his advances.

After stabbing her step father when he makes a move on her, Brianna and her maid board a ship and flee as fast as they can. They sail into a storm, the ship sinks and Brianna & her maid survive for 2 days alone at sea on a make shift raft.

Roarke and his crew rescue the women and Roarke is a big jerk at first. He makes comments about how ugly Brianna is. (Her face is all red and blistered because of the sun) He lets her stay in his room for a few weeks while they sail, and he sleeps in a hammock on the other side of the room. Brianna checks him out a lot and starts to have feelings for him, but he can't see past the sun damage on her face and pretty much ignores her.

Nick, the first mate, sees the pretty girl under the peeling skin, and sets out to make her his mistress. He giver her a drink that has herbs in it. In this day and age we call that the date rape drug. Nick orders a bath for Brianna, and she eagerly takes it. She washed her body clean after being at sea for week. She soaps her hair, wipes away all the dead skin on her face and then rises out of the bath water like some water Goddess. She is still under the effects of the drug and is eager to lose her virginity. Nick starts to kiss her and stuff, but then he gets turned off after she calls him Roarke. She has the hots for the captain you see. Just as Nick is deciding that this isn't such a good idea, Roarke bursts through the door. Having sex with a drugged women is no better than rape, and Roarke is very clear on this subject. As a young boy he saw his mother violated. So anyway, even though Roarke isn't interested in Brianna, he kicks Nick out of the room. Brianna throws herself at him, and he wants to leave, but he feels that he must stay and protect her from herself or else she will bed every man staying at the inn. Yep, the drug is that strong. After giving Nick shit for wanting to have sex with Brianna while she drugged and then trying to talk himself out of bedding her, he goes and has sex with her anyway.

Next comes the morning after. Brianna is ashamed and mad. Roarke is disgusted and mad. Brianna wants to leave, but Roarke wont let her. He feels that since he had sex with her while she drugged, and he took her virginity he owes her or something. He takes her to his house and expects her to stay there with him and his mistress. Mistress is a whore he rescued off the streets. I forget her name, but she hates Brianna. She wants to get rid of her, and when Brianna asks her for help in getting a job, the mistress/whore decides that it would be best to get rid of Brianna for good. SHe makes plans for Brianna to be sold onto the slave market. (big surprise there)

Roarke and Brianna have sex again, and thats when Brianne decides she is in love with Roarke. After they do it, Roarke tell her that while he goes back out to sea she can live in his house. SHe is offended by his offer and stalks off.

Meanwhile, mistress/whore tells Brianna that she might have a job as a governess, she just needs to meet the widowed father. They set out on this job interview late at night, and Brianna is such a stupid dimwit that she doesn't see that she is walking right into a trap. She is forced onto a ship with a cruel captain who plans to sell her to a brothel or something.

The next morning Roarke searches for Brianna and after drilling his mistress/whore he finds out what happens. Then the dummy sails on after her so that he can rescue her.

Oh gawd. So predictable.

He catches up with her, he saves her, they have sex some more, yada yada, blah blah.
SHe finally tells him that she loves him. He is thrilled to hear it, but he wont say it back to her. They dock for a while and he plans to leave her behind while he sets sail again. She sneaks back on the ship and after he finds out, he locks her away for 2 months. The ship is attacked, he almost dies, she nurses him back to life, he admits he loves her, then asks her to marry him.

Funny thing is that while reading it, I liked the book, but then when I started writing this review I had nothing but negative things to say. I hate it when that happens.